Return to Sender
by Keegan Elizabeth
Summary: Grissom/Sara and Abby. Written for Jenstog. Happy Birthday, GSRBFF!


A/N: Jen, this year you didn't give me any warnings about any flu, so I had to come up with something on my own. (I did use the prompt you gave me a couple of months ago though!) Hope you enjoy this, and I hope you have a wonderful birthday! Eat lots of chocolate for me please.

Disclaimer: No, I do not own CSI.

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"Mommy! Daddy!"

Through the heavy fog of sleep, he hears his daughter's cry and jerks away instantly. He's out of bed and tugging on a cotton t-shirt when Sara stirs and opens her eyes.

She yawns and half kicks, half tosses off the covers before struggling to sit upright.

"Honey, I'll check on Abby," he says, coming to her side and pulling the covers up again. "Stay here and get some sleep. Okay?" He gives her a quick, soft kiss and straightens.

She wants to argue but she hasn't been sleeping well, and she is _so very_ tired, so she nods her head against the pillow, murmuring a soft _Thanks_ before letting her eyes close blissfully shut.

Within seconds, he reaches Abby's room, dark save for the bright glow of her bumblebee nightlight, so he flips the light switch on as he enters to see Abby sitting in the middle of her bed, clutching her favorite teddy bear, with tears streaming down her face.

The moment he sits down on the bed, she is in his arms, her arms fastened around his neck, holding onto him tightly. As she cries, his shirt becomes wet, and he holds her to his chest with one arm wrapped around her tiny frame, while his other hand brushes through her hair.

He murmurs promises softly to her, "It's all right, baby. It's all right, Daddy's here now. Nothing bad can happen," and begins to gently rock back and forth, in the time-honored soothing motion, hoping her tears will subside soon. He hates seeing his daughter cry.

Finally, her sobs turn into hiccups and she lifts her face from his shoulder and leans back, staring at him with watery brown eyes. She sniffles and hiccups again, and she takes a hand to wipe her runny nose with the back of it before he can stop her.

"Here, let's get you cleaned up," he tells her, going to the bathroom, and when they return, he settles down with her in the rocking chair that fills one corner of her bedroom.

"Thanks, Daddy."

"You're welcome," he says, smiling at her, and he brushes a few loose curls behind her ear.

"Want to tell me what happened to make you cry, angelbug?"

"I had a nightmare…"

"Would it make you feel better to talk about it?" he asks.

She hesitates a moment before she nods. "I dreamed that these bad men came," she begins, as she settles back against his chest. "They came to take me away from you and Mommy. I was really _really_ scared, and I screamed really loud, like you and Mommy taught me to when someone I don't know wants me to go somewhere with them. But no one could hear me, no matter how loud I screamed." As she speaks, he feels her begin to tremble and her voice shake, and he rubs her back gently to calm her.

"Shh, baby, don't cry. It was just a scary dream. There are no bad men coming to take you." He presses a kiss to the crown of her head. "You know I would never let anything happen to you, right?"

He feels her head move up-and-down against his chest. "I know, Daddy," she says and lowers her voice to a whisper, "but I'm still scared."

A few moments pass as he searches for something to say to make her fear go away. "Well," he says finally, "if the bad men come to take you without Mommy or me waking up—which would _never_ happen—I'm sure they would return you quickly…"

--

The next morning, it's just the two of them in the kitchen, Abby's still asleep. They sit at the table; he drinks a cup of coffee while Sara finishes her breakfast.

"Why was Abby crying last night?" she asks, breaking off a piece of her muffin to eat.

"She had a nightmare," he says and tells her what he said to Abby.

"You told our daughter that if bad men took her, they would return her?"

He takes a sip of his coffee before nodding his head. "Yes."

"Gil! I can't believe you said that!"

"What?" He isn't sure what he did wrong.

"What if you hurt Abby's feelings? What if she starts thinking that people don't like her, what if—"

"Sara, honey. You're…" he stops suddenly because he was going to say _overreacting_, except she has been a bit sensitive lately, so he decides he better not say that. Instead, he tells her, "I was just trying to make Abby feel better and stop her from being scared."

"Did it work?"

"I think so, I was able to tuck her in afterward without much problem."

"Okay, that's good," she says, as she stands to clear her plate. "Next time though, try to remember Abby can be sensitive too sometimes. We don't want to lower her self-esteem…"

"Well, we can always enroll her in Girl Scouts," he quips, standing up as well. "I heard selling cookies works wonders in helping young girls reach their potential."

She tries and fails to fight the smile from forming on her face. "You have an answer for everything, don't you?" she asks, stepping toward him and looping her arms around his neck.

"I try," he replies, his lips curving as he leans in to kiss her.

When they hear the pitter-patter of their daughter's feet seconds later, she releases him and he meets Abby halfway, picking her up and placing her on his hips. "Good morning."

"Morning, Daddy. Hi, Mommy," she sings out, kissing him on the cheek first and then extending her neck to give her Mommy a kiss good morning too.

"Thank you, baby," Sara says. "Are you hungry? Do you want some muffins Daddy made earlier, or would you like me to make you some oatmeal?"

"Oatmeal, please. And orange juice, too."

She turns to start making Abby's breakfast, and he places Abby in a chair to get her a glass of juice. He's at the counter, next to Sara, and he puts the glass he's holding down to wrap an arm around her.

Turning her body toward him, she looks at him questioning and he leans forward to murmur in her ear, "And for this one," he places a hand lightly on her stomach, "we can always enroll him in Boy Scouts."

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A/N2: Review welcomed, and don't forget to send Jen some birthday love!


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